Valve-gear.



LE GRAND SKINNER.

VALVE GEAR.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 6. I918.

Patented July 2, 1918.

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VALVE-GEAR.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 3,1911%.

Application filed February 6, line. Serial No. 215,565.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, Ln GRAND SKINN'ER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Erie, in the county of Erie and State of Penna, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Valve-Gears, of which the following is a specification.

In my pending application Serial No. 181,832 there is disclosed a valve gearwhich includes means to permit variation in posi tion of the valves incident to longitudinal expansion of the cylinder without varying the timing or valve operating functions of the gear. The present invention relates to means for attaining the same general result, but embodies a difierent mechanical organization.

As explained in said application, when steam is supplied to an engine cylinder, the cylinder expands more than the valve gear exterior thereof, which expansion varies the positions of the valves with respect to the gear, and disturbes the timing of the valves and the efficiency of the engine, as by causing one valve to lift more than the other because of the variation in the relative position.

In the present invention the objections arising from this condition are remedied in a simple and novel manner, by permitting the cylinder expansion to shift the fulcrum of a rocker or lever which operates the valves, the shift being in proportion to the variations caused by the expansion of the cylinder.

One form of the invention is illustrated the accompanying drawing in which: Figure 1 is a side elevation.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1.

Referring specifically to the drawings, 0 indicates an engine cylinder and 7 the inlet valve stems which are operated by bell cranks 8 receiving the motion from came. not shown, carried by a rock shaft 9 in a known manner, such for example as that shown in the Skinner and Vvilliams Patent No. 114-2853. The crank shaft 10' of the engine carries a fly wheel governor which controls the valve gear, the governor being such for example as shown in my U. S. Patent No. 628,591 and indicated as a whole at 11. This device is connected by a. rod 12 to the lower arm of a rocker lever 13, the arm sf which connected a red is to the arm 15 on the rock shaft 9, whereby said shaft is oscillated.

The rocker 13 is mounted in a bearing 011 the swinging arm 16 which swings on its pivot 17 attached to the bed of the engine. This swinging arm 16 is connected by a link to a stud 19 projecting from the cylinder at a point which is moved by the expansion or contraction of the cylinder. It is shown projecting at the middle, but it could project elsewhere with corresponding changes in the length or proportions of the arm 16 to give the proper movement to the rocker 13 and link 14 to compensate for the ex ansion.

In operation, the motion will be transmitted from the governor through therod 12, rocker 13, and rod 1 1 as above described. As the cylinder expands or contracts the shifting arm 16, which forms the fulcrum of the rocker 13, will be swung one way or the other by means of the drag link 18, and consequently the fulcrum of the rocker 13 will be shifted lengthwise of the engine according to the movement of the cylinder head and consequently according to the variation in the position of the inlet valves incident to such expansion. In other words the distance between the crank shaft and the rock shaft 9 which operates the valves will not be distorted but will remain relatively the same, keeping the lift of the valves constant and the steam distribution regular.

The simplicity of the construction is obvious, and it has the advantage that it may be applied to existing engines without material modification, involving merely the substitution of the compensating device shown, for the ordinary rocker and connecting rods now employed for translating motion from the crank shaft to the cam rocker.

The invention may be embodied in various forms, and is not limited to the special arrangement shown.

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination with an engine cylinder and valve, of a lever operatively con nected to the valve, means to operate the lever, a shifting fulcrum for the lever, and a connection between said fulcrum and the cylinder arranged to shift the fulcrum according to expansion or contraction of the cylinder. A

a The combination with an engine eylin Mill der and valve, of a lever'operatively connected to the valve, means to operate the lever, a shifting fulcrum for said lever, and means actuated by expansion or contraction of the cylinder to shift the fulcrum accordingly.

3. The combination with an engine cylindercand valve, of a valve gear operatively connected to the valve and including a pivoted rocker and means to operate the same, a swinging arm on which the rocker is pivoted, and a link connecting the cylinder and arm and adapted to swing the latter in consequence of expansion of the cylinder.

4%. The combination with an engine cylinder and valve, of a valve gear operatively connected to the valve and including a pivoted rocker and means to operate the same, a swinging arm on which the rocker is pivoted, and a connection between said arm and the cylinder, adapted to swing said arm in consequenceof expansion of the cylinder.

5. The combination with an engine cylinder, valve and crank shaft, of a valve gear, including connecting rods, between the crank shaft and valve, and means to automatically Copies of this patent may be obtained for vary the effective length of the connecting rods according to expansion or contraction of the cylinder.

6. The combination with an engine cylinder, valve and crank shaft, of a valve gear including an operating connection to the crank shaft, and means actuated by expan sion or contraction of the cylinder to cause variations in the length of said connection corresponding to and compensating for said expansion or contraction.

7. The combination with a steam engine cylinder and a valve thereto, of a valve gear operatively connected to said valve, and means actuated by cylinder expansion or contraction to cause compensations in the valve gear, corresponding to said expansion or contraction, to avoid varying the valve operating function of the gear.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LE GRAND SKINNER.

Vitnesses ALBERT E. Ross, L. E. BARNES.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. G. 

